| Father Quyen Nguyen, the first Vietnamese priest in the Claretian order's 158-year history, was ordained Aug. 4 at San Gabriel Mission, San Gabriel.
 The Claretian bishop of Lubbock, Texas, Placido Rodriguez, was the ordaining prelate for the ceremony in the presence of a large assembly of family, friends, fellow parishioners and brother Claretians. Those attending included Father Nguyen's elderly mother, who was able to obtain a last-minute visa in Vietnam to travel to the U.S. and be present on the day of her 46-year-old son's entrance into the priesthood.
The rest of Father Nguyen's family is still in Vietnam. He himself was one of the last to escape his war torn native land in 1979 as an 18-year-old boat refugee.
Vincentian Father Augustine Bihn Nguyen, whom Father Nguyen met at St. John's Seminary in Camarillo, directed him to the Claretians, whose multi-ethnic parish in San Gabriel hosts a large Vietnamese community. Claretian Father Bert Billet was the vocation director who admitted him into the Claretian formation program as a seminarian.
Father Nguyen studied first at the Claretian houses of studies at Oblate College in San Antonio, Texas, and later at the Chicago Theological Union. This missionary community, founded by St. Anthony Mary Claret in Spain in 1849, now has 3,110 members in 66 different countries, with China, Indonesia and Vietnam among the newest areas of attention.
Father Nguyen has been assigned to St. Anthony Mary Claret Church, Fresno.
Family picnic and concert set at St. Joseph's Center
 The choral ensemble Legacy will be featured when the Carmelite Sisters at St. Joseph's Center in Alhambra host their annual family picnic and concert Aug. 26.
Starting at 4 p.m., the event features dinner served until 6:30 p.m. as well as a raffle, games, clowns, piņata and bouncers for children. Later, visitors can enjoy entertainment from Legacy, led by James Drollinger, that has performed sacred choral works in Austria and throughout Southern California.
Concert tickets are $7 for adults; children are admitted free. Proceeds support the center's youth programs, Petrus and Stillpoint Resources.
St. Joseph's Center is located at 507 N. Granada Ave., Alhambra. For information call (626) 289-0223 or visit www.saintjoecenter.com.
Royal court chosen for San Gabriel Mission Fiesta
 San Gabriel Mission's 236th annual fiesta royal court members were selected recently to represent the mission during the upcoming La Fiesta de San Gabriel.
Queen Janisse Mercado and Princesses Stephanie De Luna and Aramis Lopez will officially be "crowned" after the 5:30 p.m. Fiesta Volunteers' Mass on Aug. 18. Eucharist will be celebrated in the Chapel of the Annunciation; the crowning will take place afterward in the mission's Parish Center.
L a Fiesta takes place Labor Day weekend, Aug. 31-Sept. 2 when the mission --- the fourth oldest of the 21 California missions --- celebrates its anniversary with historical reenactments, music, entertainment and tours. There is no admission fee.
The mission is located at 428 S. Mission Dr. in San Gabriel. For more information, call (626) 457-3034. |
